Search

Ravi Deepa,1,2 Melissa Glenda Lewis,3 Onno Van Schayck,2 Giridhara R Babu4 1Indian Institute of Public Health-Bangalore, Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI), Bengaluru, Karnataka, India; 2Department of Family Medicine, Care and Public Health Research Institute (CAPHRI), Maastricht University, Maastricht, Limburg, the Netherlands; 3Indian Council of Medical Research-National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases (NICED), Kolkata, India; 4Department of Population Medicine, College of Medicine, QU Health, Qatar University, Doha, QatarCorrespondence: Giridhara R Babu, Email epigiridhar@gmail.comBackground: To assess the association of adverse pregnancy and infant outcomes with different cut-off levels of glucose intolerance during pregnancy in the MAASTHI cohort.Design: Pregnant women (n = 1470) underwent Oral glucose tolerance test between 24 and 36 weeks using a 75-g oral glucose load, with plasma glucose estimations measured at fasting and two hours later. Follow-up was done within 72 hours of delivery for recording type of delivery, infant weight, mid-upper arm circumference, and skinfold thickness.Results: The odds of having higher skinfold thickness (> 90th percentile) were 43% higher (AOR = 1.43; 95% CI: 1.18, 1.74) and the odds of being overweight at birth was 34% higher (AOR = 1.34; 95% CI: 1.09, 1.62) for every 1 standard deviation (9.9 mg/dL) increase in fasting plasma glucose (FPG) in male infants. The odds of delivering via caesarean section were 45% higher in women with female foetus (1.45,95% CI 1.15,1.82) for every one SD (23.4 mg/dl) increase in 2-h post-load Glucose.Conclusion: The impact of maternal glucose levels on infant and maternal outcomes differed notably between sex of the child. Compared to female infants, male infants exhibited a stronger association with elevated risks for adverse outcomes, including higher infant weight and increased skinfold thickness.Plain Language Summary: Glucose intolerance, in simple terms, refers to a condition where the body has difficulty processing sugar (glucose) properly. Normally, when we eat, our body breaks down carbohydrates into glucose, which is then used by cells for energy. However, in glucose intolerance, this process does not work as efficiently. This can lead to higher-than-normal blood sugar levels, which, if persistent, can increase the risk of developing type 2 diabetes over time. In this study, the researchers investigated how glucose intolerance during pregnancy results in negative health outcomes in mothers and infants in a South Indian City. This is significant as the adverse impact of glucose intolerance in Indian women is not widely studied. The Hyperglycemia and Adverse Pregnancy Outcome (HAPO) study was considered by WHO for defining GDM diagnosis primarily focused on Caucasian populations. Given the known ethnic differences in glucose metabolism and the high prevalence of gestational diabetes in India, understanding glucose intolerance, specifically in Indian women, is essential. In this research, all pregnant mothers underwent an oral glucose tolerance test between the 24th and 36th weeks of pregnancy. They fasted for 12 hours before their blood samples were taken to measure their fasting glucose levels. Then, they drank a glucose solution containing 75 g of glucose. After waiting for 2 hours, their glucose levels were measured again. Those with fasting glucose levels equal to or greater than 92 mg/dl and 2-hour post-load plasma glucose levels equal to or greater than 153 mg/dl were diagnosed with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). After delivery, the weight and fat deposition under the skin; known as skinfold thickness (adiposity) were measured using a skinfold caliper.The risks of higher weight and skinfold were seen in male infants compared to female infants. The overall risk of adiposity and C-section were higher than those reported in the HAPO study, highlighting the need for large-scale studies among the Indian population to better understand and address these associations.Keywords: gestational diabetes, hyperglycaemia, caesarean section, adiposity, obesity

Giridhara R Babu,1 R Deepa,1 Melissa Glenda Lewis,2 Eunice Lobo,1 Anjaly Krishnan,1 Yamuna Ana,1 Jodie G Katon,3,4 Daniel A Enquobahrie,5 Onyebuchi A Arah,6–8 Sanjay Kinra,9 GVS Murthy2,10 1Indian Institute of Public Health-Bangalore, Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI), Bangalore, India; 2Indian Institute of Public Health-Hyderabad, Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI), Hyderabad, India; 3Health Services Research and Development Center of Innovation for Veteran-Centered and Value-Driven Care, VA Puget Sound Health Care System, Seattle, WA, USA; 4Department of Health Services, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA; 5Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA; 6Department of Epidemiology, Fielding School of Public Health, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Los Angeles, CA, USA; 7California Center for Population Research, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Los Angeles, CA, USA; 8UCLA Center for Health Policy Research, Los Angeles, CA, USA; 9Non-communicable Disease Epidemiology , London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and, University College London Hospital, London, UK; 10International Centre for Eye Health, Department of Clinical Research, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UKCorrespondence: Giridhara R BabuIndian Institute of Public Health-Bangalore, Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI), Bangalore, India, Besides Leprosy Hospital, 1st Cross, Magadi Road, Bangalore 560023, IndiaEmail giridhar@iiphh.orgPurpose: Neonates born to mothers with obesity or gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) have an increased chance of various metabolic disorders later in life. In India, it is unclear whether maternal obesity or GDM is related to offspring adiposity. We aimed to understand the independent effect of maternal obesity and GDM with neonatal adiposity and whether GDM has a mediating effect between maternal obesity and neonatal adiposity.Methods: We recruited a cohort of 1120 women (between April 2016 and February 2019) from the public hospitals in Bangalore, India, who voluntarily agreed to participate and provided written informed consent. The primary outcome was neonatal adiposity, defined as the sum of skinfold thickness >85th percentile. Exposure included maternal obesity, defined as >90th percentile of skinfold thickness. GDM, the potential mediator, was classified using the World Health Organization criteria by oral glucose tolerance test. Binary logistic regression was applied to test the effect of maternal obesity and GDM on neonatal adiposity, adjusting for potential confounders. We used Paramed command in STATA version 14 for analyzing mediating effects.Results: We found that maternal obesity (odds ratio (OR)=2.16, 95% CI 1.46, 3.18) and GDM (OR=2.21, 95% CI1.38, 3.52) have an independent effect on neonatal adiposity. GDM significantly mediates 25.2% of the total effect between maternal obesity and neonatal adiposity, (natural direct effect OR = 1.16 95% CI 1.04, 1.30) with significant direct effect of maternal obesity (natural direct effect OR = 1.90 95% CI 1.16, 3.10) and significant total effect (OR=2.20 95% CI 1.35, 3.58).Conclusion: We showed that maternal obesity and GDM are independently associated with offspring adiposity. Also, GDM mediates the association of maternal obesity on adiposity in children. Interventions focused on obesity prevention in women, and effective screening and management of GDM may contribute to reducing childhood obesity in India.Keywords: mediation effects, skinfold thickness, GDM, obesity in pregnancy, childhood obesity

There is a growing interest in studying and unpacking implementation of policies and programmes as it provides an opportunity to reduce the policy translation time lag taken for research findings to translate to policies and get implemented and understand why policies may fail. Realist evaluation is a theory-driven approach that embraces complexity and helps to identify the mechanisms generating the observed policy outcomes in given context. We aimed to study facilitators and barriers while implementing the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act, 2003 (COTPA) a comprehensive national tobacco control policy, and the National Tobacco Control Programme (NTCP), 2008 using realist evaluation. We developed an initial program theory (IPT) based on a realist literature review of tobacco control policies in Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs). Three diverse states -Kerala, West Bengal, and Arunachal Pradesh- with varying degree of implementation of tobacco control law and program were chosen as case studies. Within the three selected states, we conducted in-depth interviews with 48 state and district-level stakeholders and undertook non-participant observations to refine the IPT. Following this, we organized two regional consultations covering stakeholders from 20 Indian states for a second iteration to further refine the program theory. A total of 300 Intervention-Context-Actor-Mechanism-Outcome (ICAMO) configurations were developed from the interview data, which were later synthesized into state-specific narrative program theories for Kerala, West Bengal and Arunachal Pradesh. We identified five mechanisms: collective action, felt accountability, individual motivation, fear, and prioritization that were (or were not) triggered leading to diverse implementation outcomes. We identified facilitators and barriers to implementing the COTPA and the NTCP, which have important research and practical implications for furthering the implementation of these policies as well as implementation research in India. In the future, researchers could build on the refined program theory proposed in this study to develop a middle-range theory to explain tobacco control policy implementation in India and other LMICs., (© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press in association with The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.)

Background: Diabetes is a growing concern worldwide, particularly in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Type 2 diabetes mellitus constitutes a significant proportion of cases and is associated with debilitating microvascular complications. Type 2 diabetes mellitus is steadily increasing among the LMICs where many barriers to health care exist. Thus, task shifting to community health workers (CHWs) has been proposed as a solution to improve diabetes management in these settings. However, CHWs often lack the necessary training to manage diabetes effectively. Thus, a systematic review is required to present evidence of the highest degree for this intervention., Objective: This study aims to establish the protocols for a systemic review., Methods: Using the Participants Intervention Comparator Outcome Time Study Design (PICOTS) framework, this study outlines a systematic review aiming to evaluate the impact of training programs for CHWs in diabetes management in LMICs. Quantitative studies focusing on CHWs, diabetes training, focusing on diabetes management outcomes like hemoglobin A 1c levels and fasting blood glucose levels, between January 2000 and December 2023 and found on databases such as PubMed, Ovid MEDLINE, Evidence Based Medicine Reviews, BASE, Google Scholar, and Web of Science will be included. We will include randomized controlled trials but will also include observational studies if we find less than 5 randomized controlled trials. An author committee consisting of 3 reviewers will be formed, where 2 reviewers will conduct the review independently while the third will resolve all disputes. The Cochrane Methods Risk of Bias Tool 2 will be used for assessing the risk of bias and the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluation approach for the meta-analysis and narrative synthesis analysis will be used. The results will be presented in a PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) diagram., Results: The review will begin in May 2024 and conclude in 3 months., Conclusions: The review will synthesize existing evidence and provide insights into the effectiveness of such programs, informing future research and practice in diabetes care in LMICs., Trial Registration: PROSPERO CRD42022341717; https://tinyurl.com/jva2hpdr., International Registered Report Identifier (irrid): PRR1-10.2196/57313., (©Anirudh Gaurang Gudlavalleti, Giridhara R Babu, Sureshkumar Kamalakannan, G V S Murthy, Nicolaas C Schaper, Onno C P van Schayck. Originally published in JMIR Research Protocols (https://www.researchprotocols.org), 21.08.2024.)

Background: The placenta acts as a buffer to regulate the degree of fetal exposure to maternal cortisol through the 11-Beta Hydroxysteroid Dehydrogenase isoenzyme type 2 (11-β HSD2) enzyme. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to assess the effect of prenatal psychological distress (PPD) on placental 11-β HSD2 gene expression and explore the related mechanistic pathways involved in fetal neurodevelopment., Methods: We searched PubMed, Embase, Scopus, APA PsycInfo®, and ProQuest Dissertations for observational studies assessing the association between PPD and 11-β HSD2 expression in human placentas. Adjusted regression coefficients (β) and corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were pooled based on three contextual PPD exposure groups: prenatal depression, anxiety symptoms, and perceived stress., Results: Of 3159 retrieved records, sixteen longitudinal studies involving 1869 participants across seven countries were included. Overall, exposure to PPD disorders showed weak negative associations with the placental 11-β HSD2 gene expression as follows: prenatal depression (β -0.01, 95% CI 0.05-0.02, I2=0%), anxiety symptoms (β -0.02, 95% CI 0.06-0.01, I2=0%), and perceived stress (β -0.01 95% CI 0.06-0.04, I2=62.8%). Third-trimester PPD exposure was more frequently associated with lower placental 11-β HSD2 levels. PPD and placental 11-β HSD2 were associated with changes in cortisol reactivity and the development of adverse health outcomes in mothers and children. Female-offspring were more vulnerable to PPD exposures., Conclusion: The study presents evidence of a modest role of prenatal psychological distress in regulating placental 11-β HSD2 gene expression. Future prospective cohorts utilizing larger sample sizes or advanced statistical methods to enhance the detection of small effect sizes should be planned. Additionally, controlling for key predictors such as the mother's ethnicity, trimester of PPD exposure, mode of delivery, and infant sex is crucial for valid exploration of PPD effects on fetal programming., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Introduction: India has a high prevalence of Vitamin D insufficiency among women of childbearing age. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the potential relationship between Vitamin D deficiency and gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) and low birth weight (LBW) of newborns in the "Maternal antecedents of adiposity and studying the transgenerational role of hyperglycaemia and insulin" (MAASTHI) birth cohort., Methods: A prospective cohort study involving 230 participants was conducted in public hospitals located in urban Bengaluru, India. Healthy pregnant women who visited these hospitals for antenatal care (ANC) and who were between 14 and 36 weeks of gestational age were recruited after obtaining their informed consent. An oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) was administered between 24 and 36 weeks of pregnancy and blood samples were preserved at -80°C for Vitamin D analysis. Follow-up at birth included recording the child's birth weight., Results: We found that 178 (77.4%) of the study participants were vitamin D deficient, 44 (19.1%) were diagnosed with GDM, and 64 (27.8%) gave birth to LBW babies. Women in the lowest quartile of serum Vitamin D levels had three times higher odds of developing GDM than women in the higher quartiles [OR = 3.22 (95% CI: 1.03, 10.07), p = 0.04] after adjusting for age, parity, socioeconomic status, season, and adiposity. For every one-unit increase in Vitamin D levels, Homeostatic Model Assessment for Insulin Resistance (HOMA-IR) decreased by nearly 18%. Furthermore, causal mediation analysis showed that a decrease in one unit of Vitamin D is associated with a decrease of 0.015 units of fasting blood sugar (FBS) and 0.019 units of postprandial blood sugar (PPBS) as it flows through the mediator variable insulin resistance. Vitamin D-deficient women were twice at risk of giving birth to LBW babies (OR 2.04, 95% CI 0.99, 4.19, p = 0.05)., Discussions: Low levels of Vitamin D during pregnancy are associated with a greater risk of pregnant women developing GDM and giving birth to LBW babies in urban Bengaluru., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Deepa, Schayck and Babu.)

While NCDs are in rise globally, tribal and rural populations residing near to reserve forests with limited exposure to modern lifestyles may bear a unique burden. This study investigates the prevalence and risk factors of hypertension, diabetes, and dyslipidemia among these communities. We conducted a cross-sectional study between 2018 and 2020 in the forest-dwelling population of Chamarajanagar, India. Using multistage stratified sampling based on caste and remoteness, we enrolled 608 participants aged over 18 years, including 259 non-tribal and 349 tribal individuals. Data collection includes the administration of STEPS questionnaire and measurement of fasting blood sugar, lipid levels, and blood pressure. The prevalence of diabetes, hypertension, and dyslipidemia were 4.6%, 28.8%, and 85.7%, respectively, among the study population. We also found abnormal levels of low-density lipoprotein (LDL), high-density lipoprotein (HDL), Triglycerides (TGA), Total cholesterol (TC), and very low-density lipoprotein (VLDL)in 4.9%, 82.4%, 22.7%, 5.8%, and 7.4% of participants, respectively. Significant differences were observed in diabetes, LDL abnormality, TGA abnormality, VLDL abnormality, and TC abnormality, but not in hypertension, dyslipidemia, or HDL abnormality, across the Socio Geographic Discrimination Index. We found a significant difference in diabetes and HDL abnormality, but not in hypertension, dyslipidemia, LDL abnormality, TGA abnormality, TC abnormality, or VLDL abnormality, between tribal and non-tribal populations living in the forest-dwelling area. Waist circumference was a significant independent predictor of diabetes among tribal participants, while wealth index, age, and waist circumference were significant predictors of hypertension. There were no significant predictors for dyslipidemia among tribal participants. Our study suggests that tribal population living in a remote area are at a lower risk of developing diabetes compared to non-tribal populations living in the same geographic area. However, the prevalence of hypertension and dyslipidemia among tribal populations remains high and comparable to that of the general population., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Copyright: © 2024 Mallikarjuna Majgi et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)

Background: Type 2 diabetes (T2DM) poses an enormous global health care challenge, especially among rural communities. Healthcare in these areas can be inadequate and inaccessible due to socio-demographic barriers. To overcome this situation, many low- and middle-income countries are resorting to task shifting, using community health workers (CHWs) for diabetes management. However, its successful implementation depends on the practice behaviours and knowledge of these workers., Objective: This cross-sectional study aimed to evaluate the proficiency of CHWs involved in diabetes screening and management in rural South India by identifying the existing practice behaviours and knowledge gaps., Methods: Employing a customised questionnaire, developed through inputs from experts and government officials, we assessed practice behaviours and the corresponding knowledge base of 275 CHWs. Analytical methodologies consisted of descriptive statistics, logistic regression, and mosaic plots for comprehensive data interpretation., Results: The study showcased significant deficiencies in both practice behaviours (97%) and knowledge (95%) with current mean levels ranging from 48 to 50%, respectively, among the participants. The identified areas of insufficiency were broadly representative of the core competencies required for effective diabetes management, encompassing diabetes diagnosis and referral, HbA1c testing, diabetes diet, diabetes type and self-management, microvascular complications and their screening, peripheral neuropathy management, and diabetes risk assessment. In several areas, correct practice behaviour was reported by a relatively large number of CHWs despite incorrect answers to the related knowledge questions such as referral to the health centres, self-management, and calculation of diabetes risk assessment., Conclusion: This study highlights widespread deficiencies (97% CHWs) in diabetes management practices and knowledge (95% CHWs). To overcome these deficiencies, a thorough needs assessments is vital for effective CHW training. Training of CHWs should not only identify prior knowledge and/or behaviour but also their interrelationship to help create a robust and flexible set of practice behaviours.

Introduction: Responsive caregiving (RC) leads to positive outcomes in children, including secure attachment with caregivers, emotional regulation, positive social interactions and cognitive development. Through our scoping review, we aim to summarise the practices and outcomes of RC in diverse caregiver and child populations from 0 to 8 years., Methods and Analysis: We will use the Arksey and O'Malley framework and the Joanna Briggs Institute methodology for scoping reviews. We shall present our findings as per the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines for scoping review. Only peer-reviewed, English-language articles from 1982 to 2022 will be included from PubMed, Web of Science, APA PsychInfo, APA PsycArticles, SocINDEX and Google Scholar databases. Reference lists of included articles will also be screened. The search strategy will be developed for each database, and search results will be imported into Rayyan. Screening will be done in two phases: (1) titles and abstracts will be screened by two authors and conflicts will be resolved by mutual discussion between both or by consulting with a senior author; and (2) full-texts of shortlisted studies from the first phase will then be screened using the same inclusion/exclusion criteria. A data extraction form will be developed to collate relevant information from the final list of included articles. This form will be pilot tested on the first 10 papers and iteratively refined prior to data extraction from the remaining articles. Results will be presented in figures, tables and a narrative summary., Ethics and Dissemination: No ethics approval needed as the review shall only use already published data. We shall publish the review in an open-access, peer-reviewed journal and disseminate through newsletters, social media pages, and presentations to relevant audiences., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2024. Re-use permitted under CC BY. Published by BMJ.)

The brain's abnormal and uncontrollable cell partitioning is a severe cancer disease. The tissues around the brain or the skull induce this tumor to develop spontaneously. For the treatment of a brain tumor, surgical techniques are typically preferred. Deep learning models in the biomedical field have recently attracted a lot of attention for detecting and treating diseases. This article proposes a new Ensemble Deep Learning Network (EDLNet) model. This research uses the Modified Faster RCNN approach to classify brain MRI scan images into cancerous and non-cancerous. A deep recurrent convolutional neural network (DRCNN)-based diagnostic method for early-stage brain tumor segmentation is presented. The evaluation outcomes show that the proposed tumor classification and segmentation model's performance accurately segments tissues from MRI images. For the analysis of the proposed model, two different publicly available datasets (D1&D2) are used. For D1 and D2 datasets, a total of 99.76% and 99.87% accuracies are achieved by the proposed model. The performance results of the proposed model are more effective than the state-of-the-art network models as per the experimental results.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.

Background: India experienced three coronavirus disease (COVID-19) waves, with the third attributed to the highly contagious Omicron variant. Before the national vaccination rollout for children above 6, understanding severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) immunoglobulin G (IgG) positivity in the pediatric population was essential. This study aims to assess the burden of Covid-19 infection and to estimate the seroprevalence in children aged 6 to 14 years in the state of Karnataka., Material and Methods: We surveyed 5,358 children aged 6-14 across Karnataka using 232 health facilities, from June 6 to 14, 2022. We determined the sample size using the PPS (Population Proportional to Size) technique and employed cluster sampling. We tested all participants for SARS-CoV-2 IgG with an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kit and SARS-CoV-2 RNA with reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). We sequenced samples with a cycle threshold (CT) value below 25 using whole genomic sequencing (WGS)., Result: We found an adjusted seroprevalence of IgG at 75.38% statewide, and we found 0.04% of children RT-PCR positive for COVID-19. We determined a case-to-infection ratio of 1:37 and identified the SARS-CoV-2 strains as Omicron, BA.5, and BA.2.10., Conclusion: The study showed a high seroprevalence of IgG among children with low active infection. Omicron, BA. 5, and BA. 2.10 variants were detected through WGS., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2024 Indian Journal of Community Medicine.)

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought about valuable insights regarding models, data, and experiments. In this narrative review, we summarised the existing literature on these three themes, exploring the challenges of providing forecasts, the requirement for real-time linkage of health-related datasets, and the role of 'experimentation' in evaluating interventions. This literature review encourages us to broaden our perspective for the future, acknowledging the significance of investing in models, data, and experimentation, but also to invest in areas that are conceptually more abstract: the value of 'team science', the need for public trust in science, and in establishing processes for using science in policy. Policy-makers rely on model forecasts early in a pandemic when there is little data, and it is vital to communicate the assumptions, limitations, and uncertainties (theme 1). Linked routine data can provide critical information, for example, in establishing risk factors for adverse outcomes but are often not available quickly enough to make a real-time impact. The interoperability of data resources internationally is required to facilitate sharing across jurisdictions (theme 2). Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) provided timely evidence on the efficacy and safety of vaccinations and pharmaceuticals but were largely conducted in higher income countries, restricting generalisability to low- and middle-income countries (LMIC). Trials for non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) were almost non-existent which was a missed opportunity (theme 3). Building on these themes from the narrative review, we underscore the importance of three other areas that need investment for effective evidence-driven policy-making. The COVID-19 response relied on strong multidisciplinary research infrastructures, but funders and academic institutions need to do more to incentivise team science (4). To enhance public trust in the use of scientific evidence for policy, researchers and policy-makers must work together to clearly communicate uncertainties in current evidence and any need to change policy as evidence evolves (5). Timely policy decisions require an established two-way process between scientists and policy makers to make the best use of evidence (6). For effective preparedness against future pandemics, it is essential to establish models, data, and experiments as fundamental pillars, complemented by efforts in planning and investment towards team science, public trust, and evidence-based policy-making across international communities. The paper concludes with a 'call to actions' for both policy-makers and researchers., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Copyright: © 2023 Grieve et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)

The regulatory Indian environment for advertising high fat, salt, and sugar (HFSS) foods and non-alcoholic beverages, on various media was reviewed. Identified national-level policies were categorised as mandatory or self-regulatory based on legal content. For each mandatory regulation, Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats (SWOT) analysis was undertaken to determine how existing policies could be strengthened to safeguard children from unhealthy food advertisements. Thirteen policies (nine mandatory; four self-regulatory) relevant to advertising in India were identified. Of the nine mandatory policies, Guidelines for Prevention of Misleading Advertisements and Endorsements for Misleading Advertisements, 2022, is the only policy that restricts HFSS food advertisements to children across all media. There are key shortfalls, including limited scope of 'child-targeted' advertisements and lack of criteria to define HFSS foods. A robust regulatory framework is needed to protect children from HFSS food marketing, not just what is 'directed' at them, with clear evidence-based food classification criteria., Competing Interests: None., (© 2023 The Author(s).)

Background: Understanding psychosocial environment is important for improving maternal and fetal health outcomes during pregnancy. We aimed to identify the association between gestational blood glucose levels and psychosocial and demographic factors in pregnant women., Methods: In the MAASTHI pregnancy cohort in Bengaluru, we assessed depressive symptoms, and social support using validated scales at baseline in first trimester. A 2-hour 75 g oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) was administered between 24-36 weeks of gestation. We examined the relation between psychosocial factors assessed at baseline and gestational blood glucose levels in second/third trimester using multivariate linear regression and explored association between serum cortisol and gestational blood glucose levels in subgroup samples., Results: We found that 9% of pregnant women had depressive symptoms and 14.3% had Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM). Psychosocial factors, including depressive symptoms, have a significant correlation with gestational fasting(β = 0.12, p-value<0.05) and postprandial blood sugar level(β = 0.23, p-value<0.05) and poor social support were found to have a significant association with gestational fasting blood glucose levels(β = 1.45, p-value <0.05) and postprandial blood sugar levels(β = 2.60, p-value <0.05). The sociodemographic factors such as respondent education, occupation, social and economic status were associated with gestational blood sugar after adjusting for potential confounder variables., Conclusion: Depressive symptoms and poor social support earlier in pregnancy were significantly associated with increased gestational blood glucose levels. Early detection and recognition of modifiable psychosocial risk factors can reduce glucose intolerance during pregnancy. Evaluating the benefits of screening for psychosocial factors and timely management of gestational diabetes mellitus can be helpful in India., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist, (Copyright: This is an open access article, free of all copyright, and may be freely reproduced, distributed, transmitted, modified, built upon, or otherwise used by anyone for any lawful purpose. The work is made available under the Creative Commons CC0 public domain dedication.)

Obesity in children is a major public health concern due to the increased risk of developing adverse health outcomes in their future, and disability in adulthood. The existing systematic reviews on the topic are limited in scope, focusing solely on high-income countries and children aged 4-12 years. Hence, we propose to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis to understand, how exposure to authoritative feeding style versus authoritarian, indulgent, uninvolved compare in terms of its association with adiposity in children aged 6 months to 5 years. Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Protocols (PRISMA-P) guidelines were followed for ensuring the completeness of the protocol. Case-control and cohort studies will be included. Searches will be done using electronic databases viz. PubMed, Ovid EMBASE, PsycINFO and Web of Science. Grey literature will be searched using OpenGrey and Grey Literature Report. We will only include quantitative studies using the developed search strategy. For categorical outcomes, relative risks, odds ratios, and hazard ratios with confidence intervals and for continuous outcomes mean difference with confidence intervals will be used. Risk of Bias In Non-randomized Studies- of Exposure (ROBINS-E) will be used for the evaluation of risk of bias in the individual observational studies. Considering the inherent variability in the observational studies, random effects meta-analysis will also be conducted. If between-study heterogeneity exists, a subgroup analysis based on low and middle-income countries vs. high income countries will be conducted. If the data is not suitable for combining quantitatively, a narrative synthesis will be undertaken. We propose to identify publication bias by using contour-enhanced funnel plots and "trim and fill" method. Outcome reporting bias will be ascertained by comparing the outcomes published in the protocol and the published report. The Grades of Recommendation, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) system will be used to understand the confidence we can have on the effect estimates. Registration: This protocol has been registered in International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO) on 13 March 2023 with registration number CRD42023356014., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Copyright: © 2023 Haridas et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)

Background: Timely detection and management of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) have been identified as a high priority for policymakers in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). The GUIDES trial will evaluate a package of three interconnected film-based interventions aimed at improving the timely detection and management of GDM. The protocol for this trial has previously been published; this publication outlines the statistical analysis plan for the trial., Methods and Design: The GUIDES study is a multi-country cluster-randomised controlled trial consisting of one trial conducted in Uganda and one in India (30 clusters in each country). Mixed effects models will be used to compare the primary study outcomes of the proportion of women who are tested for GDM between 24 and 32 weeks of pregnancy and the mean fasting blood sugar of women with GDM at 34-week follow-up while accounting for clustering. Secondary analyses will compare the proportion of women with self-reported GDM diagnosis at 32 weeks of pregnancy and the proportion of women with adverse perinatal outcomes related to GDM up to 4 weeks after birth in each trial arm., Trial Status and Discussion: Follow-up is expected to end in March 2023 in Uganda and in May 2023 in India. Analyses will be carried out following this statistical analysis plan in the month following trial completion., Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT03937050. Registered on 3 May 2019. Clinical Trials Registry India CTRI/2020/02/023605. Registered on 26 February 2020., (© 2023. BioMed Central Ltd., part of Springer Nature.)

High-risk Human Papillomaviruses (HPVs) and Epstein - Barr virus (EBV) are present and involved in several types of human carcinomas, including cervical and, head and neck cancers. Nevertheless, their presence and association in the pathogenesis of colorectal cancer is still nascent. The current study explored the association between the high-risk HPVs and EBV and tumor phenotype in colorectal cancers (CRCs) in the Qatari population. We found that high-risk HPVs and EBV are present in 69/100 and 21/100 cases, respectively. Additionally, 17% of the cases showed a copresence of high-risk HPVs and EBV, with a significant correlation only between the HPV45 subtype and EBV ( p  = .004). While the copresence did not significantly associate with clinicopathological characteristics, we identified that coinfection with more than two subtypes of HPV is a strong predictor of advanced stage CRC, and the confounding effect of the copresence of EBV in such cases strengthens this association. Our results indicate that high-risk HPVs and EBV can co-present in human CRCs in the Qatari population where they could plausibly play a specific role in human colorectal carcinogenesis. However, future studies are essential to confirm their copresence and synergistic role in developing CRCs.

Background: The role of maternal stress levels on mothers' mental health and fetal growth has been previously studied. However, the evidence linking cortisol exposure during pregnancy to growth outcomes in infants is sparsely available from lower and middle-income countries. We aim to investigate the association of serum cortisol levels in pregnancy with infant birth outcomes and postpartum depressive symptoms in a public health facility in India., Methods: The current study is a part of the maternal antecedents of adiposity and studying the transgenerational role of hyperglycemia and insulin (MAASTHI) prospective cohort. We assessed the relationship between maternal exposure to serum cortisol and adverse neonatal outcomes and postpartum depressive symptoms. Serum cortisol levels in stored blood samples were measured in 230 pregnant women as a biomarker for stress during pregnancy. Pregnant women between 18 and 45 years of age were recruited for the study, presenting at ≥14 weeks of gestation and providing voluntary written informed consent. The Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale assessed postpartum depressive symptoms, and detailed infant anthropometric measurements were carried out at birth., Findings: We found that higher levels (>17.66 μg/L) are significantly associated with low birth weight (OR = 2.28; 95% CI 1.21-4.32) and lower weight for length (OR = 2.16; 95% CI 1.07-4.35). The odds of developing postpartum depressive symptoms in pregnant women with higher mean cortisol cut-off levels is 2.3-fold [OR: 2.33, 95% CI (1.17, 4.64)] compared than women with lower cortisol levels. No significant association was found between serum cortisol and infants' birth weight for gestational age, head circumference, the sum of skinfold thickness, and crown-rump length., Interpretation: Our results support the hypothesis that higher maternal cortisol levels may adversely impact birth weight, weight for length in newborns, and postpartum depressive symptoms in mothers., Funding: This study was supported by the India Alliance Senior Fellowship [Grant No. IA/CPHS/20/1/505278] awarded to Giridhara R. Babu., Competing Interests: Declaration of interests This work was supported by the Wellcome Trust DBT India Alliance Senior Fellowship [Grant No. IA/CPHS/20/1/505278] awarded to Giridhara R. Babu. The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Objective: The study aims to examine the association between depressiveness in mothers on infant obesity and stunting at one year of age., Methods: We enrolled 4829 pregnant women, followed them up at public health facilities in Bengaluru for one year after birth. We collected information on women's sociodemographic characteristics, obstetric history, depressive symptoms during pregnancy and delivery within 48 h. We took infant anthropometric measurements at birth and one year. We used chi-square tests, and calculated an unadjusted odds ratio using univariate logistic regression. We used multivariate logistic regression to examine the association between maternal depressiveness, childhood adiposity, and stunting., Results: We found that the prevalence of depressiveness was 31.8% in mothers who delivered in public health facilities in Bengaluru. Infants born to mothers with depressiveness at birth had 3.9 times higher odds of having larger waist circumference than infants born to mothers with no depressiveness (AOR: 3.96, 95% Confidence Interval: 1.24,12.58) and 1.9 times higher odds of having a larger sum of skinfold thickness (AOR: 1.99, 95% CI: 1.18,3.38). Additionally, we found that infants born to mothers with depressiveness at birth had 1.7 times higher odds of stunting than infants born to mothers with no depressiveness (AOR: 1.72; 95%CI: 1.22,2.43) after adjusting for confounders., Conclusion: Our study highlights a high prevalence of depressiveness among mothers seeking antenatal care at a public hospital is associated with an increased risk of infant adiposity and stunting at one year. Further research is needed to understand the underlying mechanisms and identify effective interventions., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no competing interests., (Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Objective: To examine prevalence of novel newborn types among 541 285 live births in 23 countries from 2000 to 2021., Design: Descriptive multi-country secondary data analysis., Setting: Subnational, population-based birth cohort studies (n = 45) in 23 low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) spanning 2000-2021., Population: Liveborn infants., Methods: Subnational, population-based studies with high-quality birth outcome data from LMICs were invited to join the Vulnerable Newborn Measurement Collaboration. We defined distinct newborn types using gestational age (preterm [PT], term [T]), birthweight for gestational age using INTERGROWTH-21st standards (small for gestational age [SGA], appropriate for gestational age [AGA] or large for gestational age [LGA]), and birthweight (low birthweight, LBW [<2500 g], nonLBW) as ten types (using all three outcomes), six types (by excluding the birthweight categorisation), and four types (by collapsing the AGA and LGA categories). We defined small types as those with at least one classification of LBW, PT or SGA. We presented study characteristics, participant characteristics, data missingness, and prevalence of newborn types by region and study., Results: Among 541 285 live births, 476 939 (88.1%) had non-missing and plausible values for gestational age, birthweight and sex required to construct the newborn types. The median prevalences of ten types across studies were T+AGA+nonLBW (58.0%), T+LGA+nonLBW (3.3%), T+AGA+LBW (0.5%), T+SGA+nonLBW (14.2%), T+SGA+LBW (7.1%), PT+LGA+nonLBW (1.6%), PT+LGA+LBW (0.2%), PT+AGA+nonLBW (3.7%), PT+AGA+LBW (3.6%) and PT+SGA+LBW (1.0%). The median prevalence of small types (six types, 37.6%) varied across studies and within regions and was higher in Southern Asia (52.4%) than in Sub-Saharan Africa (34.9%)., Conclusions: Further investigation is needed to describe the mortality risks associated with newborn types and understand the implications of this framework for local targeting of interventions to prevent adverse pregnancy outcomes in LMICs., (© 2023 The Authors. BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Vitamins B12 and B6 and folate are known to have implications for pregnancy outcomes. We aimed to describe B6, B12, and folate status in pregnancy and investigate their associations with low birth weight and preterm delivery in mothers recruited from public hospitals in urban Bengaluru. Pregnant women between 18 and 45 years were included in the MAASTHI prospective cohort study. Each participant's age, socioeconomic status, and anthropometry were recorded during baseline and followed up after delivery. Blood samples were collected between the 24th and 32nd weeks of gestation and stored at -80° for analysis. B6, B12, folate, homocysteine, and methylmalonic acid (MMA) levels were analyzed in the stored samples. We found low plasma vitamin B12, folate, and B6 levels in 48.5%, 42.0%, and 10.4% of the women ( n = 230), respectively. Elevated MMA and homocysteine were observed among 73.6% and 6.1% of the women, respectively. We found B6 levels were significantly associated with birth weight (β(SE) -0.002(0.0), p = 0.001) after adjusting for age, parity, adiposity, gestational diabetes, and socioeconomic status of the mother. Those with impaired folate deficiency were twice at risk (AOR 1.95 (1.29, 3.07), p = 0.002) of low birth weight. Vitamin B6 levels and impaired folate status were associated with low birth weight in the MAASTHI birth cohort.

In this correspondence, we, co-authors and collaborators involved in the Towards Health Equity and Transformative Action on tribal health (THETA) study  respond to a recent article published in Wellcome Open Research titled  Correspondence article on the research protocol titled 'Towards Health Equity and Transformative Action on tribal health (THETA) study to describe, explain and act on tribal health inequities in India: A health systems research study protocol' published in Wellcome Open Research in December 2019  In the first part, we provide overall clarifications on the THETA study and in the second part respond to specific comments by the authors of the aforementioned correspondence., Competing Interests: Competing interests: All authors were involved in the design, conceptualisation, implementation and analysis of the THETA study., (Copyright: © 2023 N Srinivas P et al.)

High-risk human papillomaviruses (HPVs) are considered risk factors in the origin of several human malignancies, such as breast, cervical, head and neck, as well as colorectal cancers. However, there are no data reported on the HPV status in colorectal cancer in the State of Qatar. Therefore, we herein examined the presence of high-risk HPVs (16, 18, 31, 33, 35, 45, 51, 52, and 59), using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in a cohort of 100 Qatari colorectal cancer patients, and their association with tumor phenotype. We found that high-risk HPV types 16, 18, 31, 35, 45, 51, 52, and 59 were present in 4, 36, 14, 5, 14, 6, 41, and 17% of our samples, respectively. Overall, 69 (69%) of the 100 samples were HPV positive; among these, 34/100 (34%) were positive for single HPV subtypes, while 35/100 (35%) of the samples were positive for two or more HPV subtypes. No significant association was noted between the presence of HPV and tumor grade, stage, or location. However, the presence of coinfection of HPV subtypes strongly correlated with advanced stage (stage 3 and 4) colorectal cancer, indicating that the copresence of more than one HPV subtype can significantly worsen the prognosis of colorectal cancer. The results from this study imply that coinfection with high-risk HPV subtypes is associated with the development of colorectal cancer in the Qatari population.

Importance: Hypertension contributes to more than 1.6 million deaths annually in India, with many individuals being unaware they have the condition or receiving inadequate treatment. Policy initiatives to strengthen disease detection and management through primary care services in India are not currently informed by population preferences., Objective: To quantify population preferences for attributes of public primary care services for hypertension., Design, Setting, and Participants: This cross-sectional study involved administration of a household survey to a population-based sample of adults with hypertension in the Bengaluru Nagara district (Bengaluru City; urban setting) and the Kolar district (rural setting) in the state of Karnataka, India, from June 22 to July 27, 2021. A discrete choice experiment was designed in which participants selected preferred primary care clinic attributes from hypothetical alternatives. Eligible participants were 30 years or older with a previous diagnosis of hypertension or with measured diastolic blood pressure of 90 mm Hg or higher or systolic blood pressure of 140 mm Hg or higher. A total of 1422 of 1927 individuals (73.8%) consented to receive initial screening, and 1150 (80.9%) were eligible for participation, with 1085 (94.3%) of those eligible completing the survey., Main Outcomes and Measures: Relative preference for health care service attributes and preference class derived from respondents selecting a preferred clinic scenario from 8 sets of hypothetical comparisons based on wait time, staff courtesy, clinician type, carefulness of clinical assessment, and availability of free medication., Results: Among 1085 adult respondents with hypertension, the mean (SD) age was 54.4 (11.2) years; 573 participants (52.8%) identified as female, and 918 (84.6%) had a previous diagnosis of hypertension. Overall preferences were for careful clinical assessment and consistent availability of free medication; 3 of 5 latent classes prioritized 1 or both of these attributes, accounting for 85.1% of all respondents. However, the largest class (52.4% of respondents) had weak preferences distributed across all attributes (largest relative utility for careful clinical assessment: β = 0.13; 95% CI, 0.06-0.20; 36.4% preference share). Two small classes had strong preferences; 1 class (5.4% of respondents) prioritized shorter wait time (85.1% preference share; utility, β = -3.04; 95% CI, -4.94 to -1.14); the posterior probability of membership in this class was higher among urban vs rural respondents (mean [SD], 0.09 [0.26] vs 0.02 [0.13]). The other class (9.5% of respondents) prioritized seeing a physician (the term doctor was used in the survey) rather than a nurse (66.2% preference share; utility, β = 4.01; 95% CI, 2.76-5.25); the posterior probability of membership in this class was greater among rural vs urban respondents (mean [SD], 0.17 [0.35] vs 0.02 [0.10])., Conclusions and Relevance: In this study, stated population preferences suggested that consistent medication availability and quality of clinical assessment should be prioritized in primary care services in Karnataka, India. The heterogeneity observed in population preferences supports considering additional models of care, such as fast-track medication dispensing to reduce wait times in urban settings and physician-led services in rural areas.

Background: The burden of tobacco use is disproportionately high in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). There is scarce theorisation on what works with respect to implementation of tobacco control policies in these settings. Given the complex nature of tobacco control policy implementation, diversity in outcomes of widely implemented policies and the defining role of the context, we conducted a realist synthesis to examine tobacco control policy implementation in LMICs., Methods: We conducted a systematic realist literature review to test an initial programme theory developed by the research team. We searched EBSCOHost and Web of Science, containing 19 databases. We included studies on implementation of government tobacco control policies in LMICs., Results: We included 47 studies that described several contextual factors, mechanisms and outcomes related to implementing tobacco control policies to varying depth. Our initial programme theory identified three overarching strategies: awareness, enforcement, and review systems involved in implementation. The refined programme theory identifies the plausible mechanisms through which these strategies could work. We found 30 mechanisms that could lead to varying implementation outcomes including normalisation of smoking in public places, stigmatisation of the smoker, citizen participation in the programme, fear of public opposition, feeling of kinship among violators and the rest of the community, empowerment of authorised officials, friction among different agencies, group identity among staff, shared learning, manipulation, intimidation and feeling left out in the policy-making process., Conclusions: The synthesis provides an overview of the interplay of several contextual factors and mechanisms leading to varied implementation outcomes in LMICs. Decision-makers and other actors may benefit from examining the role of one or more of these mechanisms in their particular contexts to improve programme implementation. Further research into specific tobacco control policies and testing particular mechanisms will help deepen our understanding of tobacco control implementation in LMICs., Prospero Registration Number: CRD42020191541., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2022. Re-use permitted under CC BY. Published by BMJ.)

Purpose: The Maternal Antecedents of Adiposity and Studying the transgenerational role of Hyperglycaemia and Insulin cohort in Bengaluru, South India, aims to understand the transgenerational role of increased circulating glucose levels or hyperglycaemia and other nutrients and psychosocial environment, on the risk of childhood obesity, as an early marker of chronic diseases., Participants: Through this paper, we describe the baseline characteristics of the cohort participants and their children, along with plans and challenges. A total of 5694 pregnant women were screened, with 4862 (85.4%) eligible pregnant women recruited at baseline. We assessed anthropometry, Haemoglobin status, Oral Glucose Tolerance Test (OGTT), dietary practices, depressive symptoms using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale and social support in all women. Follow-up visits involved assessing anthropometry and the health profile of mothers and children., Findings to Date: Among 4862 eligible participants recruited, 3260 (67%) underwent OGTT, while 2962 participants completed OGTT (90.9%). During the pregnancy, 9.7% of women were obese (>90th percentile of skinfold thickness), and 14.3% had gestational diabetesmellitus. Moreover, 6.2% and 16.8% of women had symptoms suggestive of depression during pregnancy and the immediate postnatal period, respectively. We found that 3.3% of children were small for gestational age, 10.8% were large for gestational age and 9.7% of children were obese at birth., Future Plans: We have completed recruitment and baseline data collection in 2019, and are conducting annual follow-ups until age 4 of the participant's children. For delineating causal pathways of childhood obesity, blood aliquots are stored in the biorepository. The study will inform policy formulation and community awareness in the prevention and control of non-communicable diseases and health promotion., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2022. Re-use permitted under CC BY. Published by BMJ.)

Background: India has experienced the second largest outbreak of COVID-19 globally, yet there is a paucity of studies analysing contact tracing data in the region which can optimise public health interventions (PHI's)., Methods: We analysed contact tracing data from Karnataka, India between 9 March and 21 July 2020. We estimated metrics of transmission including the reproduction number (R), overdispersion (k), secondary attack rate (SAR), and serial interval. R and k were jointly estimated using a Bayesian Markov Chain Monte Carlo approach. We studied determinants of risk of further transmission and risk of being symptomatic using Poisson regression models., Findings: Up to 21 July 2020, we found 111 index cases that crossed the super-spreading threshold of ≥8 secondary cases. Among 956 confirmed traced cases, 8.7% of index cases had 14.4% of contacts but caused 80% of all secondary cases. Among 16715 contacts, overall SAR was 3.6% [95% CI, 3.4-3.9] and symptomatic cases were more infectious than asymptomatic cases (SAR 7.7% vs 2.0%; aRR 3.63 [3.04-4.34]). As compared to infectors aged 19-44 years, children were less infectious (aRR 0.21 [0.07-0.66] for 0-5 years and 0.47 [0.32-0.68] for 6-18 years). Infectors who were confirmed ≥4 days after symptom onset were associated with higher infectiousness (aRR 3.01 [2.11-4.31]). As compared to asymptomatic cases, symptomatic cases were 8.16 [3.29-20.24] times more likely to cause symptomatic infection in their secondary cases. Serial interval had a mean of 5.4 [4.4-6.4] days, and case fatality rate was 2.5% [2.4-2.7] which increased with age., Conclusion: We found significant heterogeneity in the individual-level transmissibility of SARS-CoV-2 which could not be explained by the degree of heterogeneity in the underlying number of contacts. To strengthen contact tracing in over-dispersed outbreaks, testing and tracing delays should be minimised and retrospective contact tracing should be implemented. Targeted measures to reduce potential superspreading events should be implemented. Interventions aimed at children might have a relatively small impact on reducing transmission owing to their low symptomaticity and infectivity. We propose that symptomatic cases could cause a snowballing effect on clinical severity and infectiousness across transmission generations; further studies are needed to confirm this finding., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Robotics and autonomous systems are reshaping the world, changing healthcare, food production and biodiversity management. While they will play a fundamental role in delivering the UN Sustainable Development Goals, associated opportunities and threats are yet to be considered systematically. We report on a horizon scan evaluating robotics and autonomous systems impact on all Sustainable Development Goals, involving 102 experts from around the world. Robotics and autonomous systems are likely to transform how the Sustainable Development Goals are achieved, through replacing and supporting human activities, fostering innovation, enhancing remote access and improving monitoring. Emerging threats relate to reinforcing inequalities, exacerbating environmental change, diverting resources from tried-and-tested solutions and reducing freedom and privacy through inadequate governance. Although predicting future impacts of robotics and autonomous systems on the Sustainable Development Goals is difficult, thoroughly examining technological developments early is essential to prevent unintended detrimental consequences. Additionally, robotics and autonomous systems should be considered explicitly when developing future iterations of the Sustainable Development Goals to avoid reversing progress or exacerbating inequalities., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Objectives: Since December 2019, the world has been grappling with the COVID-19 pandemic, which has caused severe loss of lives, the breakdown of health infrastructure, and disruption of the global economy. There is growing evidence on mortality patterns in high-income countries. However, similar evidence from low/middle-income nations is lacking. Our review aimed to describe COVID-19 mortality patterns in the WHO-SEAR nations, and explore the associated factors in order to explain such trends., Methods: A systematic and comprehensive search was undertaken in PubMed and Google Scholar to obtain maximum hits on COVID-19 mortality and its determinants in the SEAR, using a combination of MeSH terms and Boolean operators. The data were narratively synthesized in detail under appropriate themes., Results: Our search identified 6411 unique records. Mortality patterns were described in terms of important demographical and epidemiological indicators. Gaps in available evidence and paucity of adequate research in this area were also highlighted., Conclusions: This review examined significant contributors to COVID-19 mortality across SEAR nations, while emphasizing issues relating to insufficient studies and data quality, and reporting challenges and other concerns in resource-constrained settings. There is a compelling need for more work in this area, to help inform decision making and improve public-health response., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have influenced the work reported in this paper., (© 2022 The Authors.)

The present study was aimed to investigate the effect of standardised hydroalcoholic extract of Bacopa monniera (BME) against isoproterenol (ISO) induced cardiac stress. Isoproterenol (85 mg/kg body weight) was administered intraperitoneally to induce cardiac stress in rats. Bacopa monniera extract (BME75 and 150 mg/kg) was orally administered for 21 days followed by ISO on 22nd and 23rd experimental days. ISO caused significant cardiac damage, which was concomitant with increased apoptosis and attenuated expressions of Nrf2, HO-1, and regulating apoptotic protein expressions of Bax, Bcl2 and NOS2. Treatment with BME in rats significantly improved cardiac dysfunction by maintaining cardiac rhythm, myocardial integrity. Decreased oxidative stress by restored expressions of Nrf2, NQO1 and HO-1 followed by elevating antioxidant enzymes and total glutathione levels. Our present results suggest that the BME treatment strengthening the endogenous defence system through Nrf2 modulation and played a key role against cardiac oxidative stress induced by ISO in rats.

Objectives: The objective of this review is to examine the changes in food consumption pattern of Indians over the years and to recommend evidence-based policy making regarding all the factors affecting food consumption. Methods: We have reviewed the articles from major databases such as PubMed and Google Scholar. The keywords used for the search included dietary pattern, dietary trend, dietary intake, food system, nutrition system, prehistoric food systems, drought, famine, whole grains, diets, prices, income, environment, urban food consumption, processed foods, food security, food preferences, demographic transition, fat intake, food production, public distribution system, food consumption pattern, Indian agriculture, and India. Results: There is no facilitating environment for the production and cultivation of healthy and sustainable food. Conclusion: Policymakers should make major amendments to food and agricultural policies, and demotivate the consumption of junk food., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 John and Babu.)